Please rotate your device

Poisonous Fillings

Facebook

Twitter

Google+

25/05/1840

Information

Monsieur J.M. Mallan, a surgeon-dentist from London's Ludgate Hill, 'begs to inform the nobility, gentry and inhabitants of this town and their vicinities that he may be consulted on Mondays at Mrs Swift's, Market Place'. He offers the following:
"...to fill the cavities of decayed teeth, however large, with Mineral Saccedaneum, the great advantage of which is that it is placed in the tooth in an almost liquid state, without heat or pressure, and immediately hardens into an enamel which by a recent improvement will not discolour. it allays pain, arrests further progress of decay, thus preventing the necessity of extraction. By this means, a mere shell is converted into a sound and useful tooth, and the unpleasant taint of the breath arising from it entirely removed."
What he doesn't say is that 'Mineral Saccedaneum' is almost pure mercury and is most definitely not a nice thing to have in your mouth! (Lincoln, Rutland and Stamford Mercury)
Taken from The Peterborough Book of Days by Brian Jones, The History Press, 2014.

Locality

Local

Global

National

Abbot Sexwolf, the First Abbot of Medehamstede

Facebook

Twitter

Google+

655

Information

The first abbey in Medehamstede, now Peterborough, was built around 655. The abbey was founded by King Peada, who also employed the first abbot. The abbot's name has been spelt in a variety of formats including Saxulf, Sexulf, Saxwulf, Seaxwolf and Sexwolf. There are also many different accounts of how he lived his life.

Sexwulf was much celebrated in Medehamstede in the past, although the name has now been all but forgotten. He is said to have been wealthy, well-liked and had many connections amongst the elite of the Saxon community. These connections enabled him to convert many others to Christianity and he was rewarded for his hard work by becoming a bishop.

He is also credited with establishing the first community in what is now Thorney. A small anchorage was created on Thorney island by him when he was gifted the land, known then as Ancarig. (1)

Citation

(1)'Houses of Benedictine monks: Abbey of Thorney', in A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 2, ed. L F Salzman (London, 1948), pp. 210-217. British History Onlinehttp://www.british-history.ac.... [accessed 14 June 2018].